As he disappeared into the bedroom, she breathed a sigh of relief that he would soon be fully clothed. She’d certainly seen other shirtless men in her life. It shouldn’t have made her feel awkward. But her new friend was particularly attractive, and that somehow changed things.

“Something wrong?” he asked when he returned to find her still standing in the entryway, holding the food.

She cleared her throat. She was already here; it would be stupid to leave, especially because she could tell he hadn’t thought twice about letting her in before finding a shirt. Even what he’d chosen to wear—an old T-shirt and jeans—suggested he wasn’t trying to impress her.

“No, nothing,” she said and put the food on the table.

“Can I get you a drink? A beer or…” He checked his fridge. “A beer?”

She laughed. “A beer would be perfect.”

“Great. I happen to have plenty.”

As he got out the beer and pulled the food containers and chopsticks from the sack, she walked around his living room. He didn’t have many furnishings, nothing beyond the basics. His most prized possessions seemed to be a mountain bike and a fancy backpack he had stashed in one corner. “You mountain bike?”

He looked up. “Whenever I get the chance.”

“You hike, too, I see.”

“I do.”

Returning to the table, she watched as he got two plates from the cupboard. “You told me you’ve only lived here for five months. What first brought you to the area? Your job?”

“No, my brother’s here.”

In one of his texts, he’d indicated that he and his brother had basically raised themselves. “How old is he?”

“Maddox? Not quite a year older.”

“And you two are close?”

“Always have been.” After opening the food boxes, he held up the chopsticks. “Should we use forks instead?”

“I could show you how to use the chopsticks, if you’d like to give them a try.”

He considered her for a second. “Okay. Why not?” he said with a shrug.

She broke apart a set of chopsticks and positioned them in her right hand, showing him how easy it was to manipulate them if he held them correctly. “Now you try.”

He seemed to handle them okay, but he put a couple of forks on the table just in case.

“Where did you grow up?” she asked after they’d both sat down and he’d waited for her to dish up some honey-walnut shrimp, pork fried rice, chow mein and cashew chicken.

“LA,” he replied as he got his own food. “You?”

“Boise.”

“Axel went to school at Boise State, if I remember right. Is that where you met him?”

“Yeah. He’s from Denver, but his brother, Rowen, played football for Boise State, so he wanted to go to school there. They roomed together Rowen’s senior year.”